It's always fun to try new piecing techniques and this block was no exception. Some of you ladies have mentioned how fun it is to play with other people's fabric and I agree. I have found a couple of new favorites that I am going to have to source really soon because now I am thinking about them. Ahem.Thanks for that Rachel!

This was my first time paper piecing, as well as using starch. I may just be a convert, the starch is an amazing addition to the sewing process. I purchased the Niagara brand starch from the supermarket and when I first smelled the starch fumes boiling away under the heat of the iron, I became overwhelmed with tears. (Yes, I am really emotional once a month :0) Kidding aside, that scent was so familiar in a warm and nostalgic way. It didn't take me long to realize that I was in fact, remembering the smell of my grandfather who passed away when I was 8. The senses work in mysteriously awesome ways, triggering memories otherwise forgotten. It has been over twenty years since I last smelled my grandfather, and some of the memories have already faded. I couldn't be happier knowing that smelling this starch whenever I want will take me right back to my grandpa's lap. Needless to say, I enjoyed this block.

Monday, February 22, 2010

edit to add: I forgot to mention that it would be fine if you added something from your stash if it went with the green/blue/gray thing. Also, my layout has 16 blocks, so I won't be sad if you make me two but it isn't expected. Thanks!

I wish that was the weather forecast! I couldn't pass up the pun for my quilt. I'm up for March and all my fabric is ready to head out.

I decided the easiest way to describe what I want is '90 degrees' - no triangles or curves please. My fabrics are all greens, blues, and gray. Some of the packets tend more toward green, others blue. I calculated (for my stash report you know!) that I cut more more than 9 yards of fabric once done, so everybody should have a good selection.

I like funky, modern stuff - so that's the general feel I'm going for. I'm going to sash all the blocks up to 17" square, probably with the Kona snow. So Please:

make a block 12.5" min to 15.5" max - but it doesn't have to be a squaremake all your pieces right anglesuse at least one of the colored solidsmake a signature block in any style you choosereturn large scraps - I'll piece my block from them and piece the back, too

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Do you ever find yourself lying in bed at night sewing in your mind. I seem to do that a lot when I'm really into a project or had been quilting for a few hours that day. Well last night was no different, I was sewing strings in my mind! So I got right to my other block today...

I also made my siggy block. Do you want your scraps back Rachel?I used only Rachel's scraps for both blocks and added 3 scraps of my own for the sig block.

I finished Rachel's blocks yesterday and they were such fun to make! I did paper piecing for the first time last month so I'm thrilled to get to do more :)

Block one...

Block two.

Rachel had so many wonderful fabrics to play with, so it made this really fun and easy.

Hope you like them Rachel! :) [Oh and please do let us know about signature blocks and whether you want your scraps returned, thanks!]

And I've finally decided what I'd like to do for my blocks! Told you I'd change my mind. Jacquie from Tallgrass Prairie Studio really inspired me with her selvage spiderweb quilt, and while I'm not about to start collecting enough selvages to manage this for April, I think it'd be a perfect way to use scraps!

I started collecting scraps yesterday and figuring out what fabric to have as the centre bit. Solid? Dots? Hmm...

This is my first string block ever, thanks for the great tutorial Rachel! It was so fun to make, I think I have enough strips left to make a second block. I was also wondering if you'd want us to make an additional 6 1/2 inch square with a white strip in the center for our signatures, that way including one with your signature, you'd end up with enough squares to make three blocks for the back. Just a thought :) ~ Steph

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Okay, so it seems that all of you are on board for this charity quilt project.

Here's my initial idea for the quilt (feel free to jump in or revise as needed).

The quilt has to be twin sized (approx 68x86), so we will need 30 - 14.5" Maverick star blocks (pieced block size 14"), for a quilt that is 5 blocks wide and six blocks long. There are twelve of us, so if each of us makes 2 blocks, we'll have 24 blocks. If 6 of you want to volunteer to make 3 blocks each, then we'll have 30 total.

I came up with a general color scheme for the quilt:

The backgrounds of the blocks should be white and you can use any or all of the colors in the scheme for the star points and centers (all pink stars, teal and orange, all green, etc.). I was channeling the Flea Market Fancy line when I came up with that scheme (here's a picture of what I was going for), so any bright, fun, cheery fabrics would be great. Other colors are fine in the blocks, as long as at least one of the five colors above is dominant.

The quilts are due on April 30, so if you could get the blocks in the mail by April 1, I should have enough time to put everything together.

As always, if you have any other ideas or suggestions for this, please chime in in the comments. Also, let us know how many blocks you can make in the comments too (2 or 3).

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Here's a shot of the blocks that I've received in the mail so far (taken last week). This is the closest they're going to be to looking like a quilt for a while, so I wanted to get a shot of them all together.

I love seeing them all together like this and am glad that I stuck with one color for the center to tie everything together. It's so much fun to see how you all combined my fabrics together to get such cool looking patchwork blocks.

I think I'm going to quilt these as separate blocks (with a muslin backing) and then sew the quilted squares together, add a backing fabric and then tie the quilt on top (that's the best I could decipher the japanese instructions in my inspiration book). Does that sound like a recipe for failure, or do you think it will work out okay (quilting, then joining, then tying)?

• • •

And, on another note. I'm not sure if we're still doing the charity quilt together, but I do have an option for all of us.

A lady that my dad works with is getting together 20 or so twin sized bed quilts for teen girls at Children's Village in Detroit, MI (by April 30). I was thinking if you were up for it, we could all donate a block to the quilt and I could combine them and create a quilt.

If you have other ideas for a charity option, we definitely don't have to go this route. I just purchased this bundle of this Joel Dewberry Chestnut Hill fabric to make a zig zag quilt of my own to donate to the group, so I'll be making a quilt to donate either way.

If you want to go this route with the charity quilt, we can discuss color options or block ideas in the comments (or via email).

Monday, February 1, 2010

Hi everyone! I am finally getting around to finishing up these blocks and posting them. I was so inspired by all of your blocks, I kept teetering on how to approach these (That and January being the craziest month I can remember). This is such a great block for a bee, thanks for the challenge Rebekah! My mind is whirling with possibilities for my own scrappy quilt.

I really enjoyed making these blocks, so much that I almost went to the store to match that hot pink center to make more, almost! :) Sorry Rebekah. I like my first block, but the second is so bright and cheerful, I can't help but love it a little bit more! I look forward to this year of sewing with you crafty ladies, thanks for letting me play along!